Merry Christmas and 18 week update!

This year we spent Christmas in Buda, Texas with Mom Stoner and Dave's brother, Michael. On Christmas Eve we attented church and then had a delicious Chinese dinner. On Christmas morning we opened presents and spent the day enjoying each other's company. We had a yummy turkey dinner compliments of Mom Stoner. We had a wonderful Christmas!

Baby Update: Baby Stoner weighs 7 ounces and is as long as a bell pepper (5 1/2 inches). The baby's blood vessels are visible through transparent skin, and the nerves are being covered by myelin (a protective sheath). The ears are now in their final position but stick out a bit (hopefully not like Dumbo!). The baby's genitalia is definitely recognizable now, so only 2 more weeks until we know our baby's gender!

Fun with Tristan!

Last night, we had some Christmas fun with our nephew, Tristan. Karyn and David (Tristan's mom and dad) took advantage of the evening to finish Christmas shopping for the kiddo. We built a fabulous gingerbread house, and then played a game of charades and acted out different animals. Oh, and of course Dave and Tristan spent some time playing the Wii.

Tristan is pretending to eat his gingerbread house.

We are all pretending to eat the gingerbread house!

Tristan and his Uncle Dave.

17 week update and belly picture

This week our baby's bones are changing from soft cartilage to bone and the baby can move all of his/her joints. Baby Stoner is 5 inches long, and weighs about 5 ounces. If you're wondering what 5 ounces feels like, pick up a turnip!

My belly has definitely popped out since we last took a picture. It's become even more noticeable just in the last week.

16 week update

This morning, I went to the doctor for my 16 week check-up. It was a quick appointment... I got weighed, had my blood pressure taken, and heard Baby Stoner's heartbeat again. The heartbeat is very strong; the doctor says about 150-160 beats per minute. It is such an amazing sound! My weight and blood pressure are right where they should be. I scheduled my 20 week appointment for January 9th, and we should be able to find out the gender of Baby Stoner ("if the baby cooperates," as Dr. Alexis puts it)!

This week, our precious baby is about 4 1/2 inches long and weighs about 3 1/2 ounces. This is about the size of an avocado! In the next few weeks, the baby should double in weight and add inches. So, I'm expecting a growth spurt! I have started wearing some maternity clothes, especially pants, and I anticipate they'll be a necessity in the next couple weeks. Next week, we'll post a new belly shot.

Annual Stoner/ Warner Graham Cracker House Extravaganza

Last night, our friends Matt and Lauren Warner came over for pizza and Christmas fun! Lauren and I started making graham cracker houses for the holidays when we were in college, and we've continued the tradition even now. Dave and Matt are good sports! We all came up with a back story for our houses so here goes (left to right): my house is a modern art museum from Venus, Dave's is the Parthenon decorated for the holidays, Matt's is Flipz Field, a football stadium, and Lauren has yet to give us the details of her house! We ate tons of candy as we built and took lots of silly pictures. This is a tradition we'd like to continue with our kids.

Lauren is about 26 weeks pregnant, and I am about 15 weeks pregnant. Our bellies are quite different! Looks like Baby Stoner has some more growing to do! Matt and Lauren are having a boy, and his name is Collin Andrew (they'll call him Cole for short). He is due March 10. We're excited that our babies will get to be playmates.


Dave and I are so excited about the coming year! We are truly blessed in our marriage and we are looking forward to sharing all the love we have with our baby.

15 weeks: The apple of our eyes

This week our baby is 4 inches long and weighs 2 1/2 ounces, about the size of an apple. Baby Stoner is able to move all of his/her limbs and is forming taste buds this week. We've had a feeling that Baby Stoner is a girl, but last night I had a dream that we're having a boy. Only 5 weeks until we know for sure! My next doctor's appointment is next Friday, and I should get to hear the heartbeat again.

14 week update (thanks to Baby Center)

This week's big developments: Your baby can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb. Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny feature form one expression after another. His kidneys are producing urine, which he releases into the amniotic fluid around him — a process he'll keep up until birth. He can grasp, too, and if you're having an ultrasound now, you may even catch him sucking his thumb. In other news: Your baby's stretching out. From head to bottom, he measures 3 1/2 inches — about the size of a lemon — and he weighs 1 1/2 ounces. His body's growing faster than his head, which now sits upon a more distinct neck. By the end of this week, his arms will have grown to a length that's in proportion to the rest of his body. (His legs still have some lengthening to do.) He's starting to develop an ultra-fine, downy covering of hair, called lanugo, all over his body. Your baby's liver starts making bile this week — a sign that it's doing its job right — and his spleen starts helping in the production of red blood cells. Though you can't feel his tiny punches and kicks yet, your little pugilist's hands and feet (which now measure about 1/2 inch long) are more flexible and active.